Africa Cries for Clean Water

The need for clean, safe water in Africa is overwhelming. Over 300 million people in that continent do not have access to clean water to drink. The lack of clean water results in over 80 percent of the diseases in Africa. In many parts of Africa, young girls are sent to collect the water, walking over 3 miles each day, thus keeping the girls from going to school.

The Africa Oasis Project of the Assemblies of God is a concerted effort to provide clean, adequate water for the people of Africa. Many times the answer to this dilemma is just below their feet, but finding and extracting the water is complex and costly. AOP is helping to dig deep or shallow wells in water-challenged communities, while also teaching people how to collect rainwater and other methods of storing water supplies.

African leaders are also being trained by AOP on how to care for their wells, about sanitation and personal hygiene, and about irrigation, sewage management, and drought measures.

Missionary Steve Evans, assisted by his wife Glenda, serves as the missionary director for AOP. They live in South Africa but travel across Africa, assessing and assisting with the needs for fresh water.

When Steve is asked how he and Glenda got involved in water solutions for Africa, he states: "Like most African missionaries, I saw the need as soon as we arrived in Africa. Glenda and I introduced a waiter to Jesus at a hotel in Zimbabwe. Then we went to the waiter's village to tell his family about Jesus. When we asked what we could take to the people there, we were told they needed water. So we took a huge metal container of water, and we also took Jesus to the village. That day, the people received the water and Jesus. In Africa, water preaches."

Since that day in 1982, water has continued to be an evangelism tool for Steve and Glenda.

"It's the desire of the Africa Oasis Project to drill wells as closely as possible to the AG churches, so that people can come for running water and for Living Water," says Steve.